The 15th annual Kabaddi Cup takes place at the Abbotsford Centre (33800 King Rd.) this Sunday, Aug. 30.
Including Abbotsford’s Kabaddi Club, the Lions, teams from Vancouver, Prince George and Richmond along with the Rajbir Raju and Harjeet Talwar Kabaddi clubs will be competing for the cup.
According to Bubbal Sangur, of the Abbotsford Kabaddi Club, local players as well as those from the U.K., U.S. and India will be taking part.
Kabaddi is a contact sport, with roots originating in India. It involves two teams of seven or eight — depending on the style being played — competing for the highest score over two 20-minute halves.
To score a player must “raid” the opponents’ side of the court by entering their half and attempting to make contact with one or more opposing players using the hands or feet. If the player successfully touches an opponent and returns to his side of the court, which extends 11 metres on either side of the centre line on a circle-style pitch, he scores a point. If he touches three players and returns to his side then it counts as a three-point score in such games where this is permitted.
After contact has been made, the objective of the opponent or defense is to trap the player so as to prevent him or her from crossing back over the centre line. If the raider is caught, he is considered out.
The sport encompasses different rules between international and national styles of play, with India for instance, recognizing four major forms.
The Kabaddi Cup, organized by the Abbotsford Kabbadi Club in association with the Canada West Kabaddi Federation, will be conducted under Punjabi Circle Style rules.
Circle kabaddi does not require a raider to chant the word “kabaddi” during a raid, which is a requirement in some other styles such as under international rules to ensure the referee knows the player has not taken a breath during the attack.
In addition, raids are one-on-one as the player contacted is the only one who can attempt to stop the attacking player. If a raider is caught and deemed out, he does not have to exit the field and a successful stop scores a point for the defence.
The Kabaddi Cup kicks off at 11 a.m. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster.
